A Day Out with Fuel Poverty Action and DPAC.

Fuel Poverty Action issued a call out for a demonstration, Bin British Gas, outside the British Gas Annual General Meeting on May 12th 2014, which coincided with the action planned by Disabled People Against the Cuts, The Independent Living Fund Fightback. They were going to visit the Department of Work and Pensions offices in Tothill Street. Happily the DWP offices were only a block away from the location of the AGM, The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre.

Afterwards the demonstration moved a block away, to the DWP offices, at Caxton House, Tothill Street. DPAC paid a visit to Mike Penning MP, Minister Against Disabled People, to deliver a letter asking for the ConDems not to kill disabled people by abolishing the ILF (Independent Living Fund), but to continue it and expand it for other. The Conservative MP of Hemel Hempstead has also been known to have had armed police guards for fear of facing disabled protesters. This time he only had the agency security guards from G4S. The letter was delivered into the hands of one of the security guard who took it up to Mike Penning’s office.

The picket eventually had to ask the workers leaving the building if they knew Mike Penning, because he does not seem to exist. I do wonder whether we should have set up a vigil outside the DWP offices.

What is the Independent Living Fund?The Independent Living Fund (ILF) is a ring-fenced pot of funding to provide funding to help 18,000 disabled people with high support needs, live an independent life in the community, rather than in residential care.

Closure of ILF: In March 2014 government decided to close the ILF in June 2015 in spite of a court ruling that said their previous decision to close ILF was in breach of the Equality Act. As usual DWP blatantly ignored the court.

Linda Burnip explaining why they are unhappy with the DWP and the politicians.

Shouting to IDS.

Protester explaining that through the ILF, she employs ten people to take care of her. The closure of the ILF will impact those people and the community.